Fumio Asakura is the father of modern Japanese sculpture. The Asakura Sculpture Museum showcases his art right inside his former studio and residence from the early 1900s. You’ll have the chance to see both his art and a traditional Japanese home from the early 1900s.

Within his home, you can experience entering a traditional Japanese room floored with tatami mats with sliding paper doors, a Japanese garden in the middle of his home, his studio and many other interesting rooms throughout his house.

Photo Credit: Savvy Tokyo

Address: 7 Chome-18-10 Yanaka, Taito City, Tokyo 110-0001

Hours: Closed Thursday and Monday, 9:30am -4:30pm

Website: http://www.taitocity.net/zaidan/asakura/

How to get there: A 3 minute walk from Nippori Station, West Exit on the JR Line.

 

A small temple famous for it’s monument for Osen, a beautiful girl working at a tea store from the 1700s who acted as the model for famous ukiyo-e artist Suzuki Harunobu. Both Osen and Harunobu are remembered in the monument. The monuments origin is unclear but, documents show that it dates back to the 1700s.

Photo Credit: Visiting Japan

Address: 3 Chome-1 Yanaka, Taito City, Tokyo 110-0001

Hours: N/A

Website: N/A

How to get there: A 10 minute walk from Nippori Station, South Exit on the JR Line.

 

A small Nichiren Buddhist temple sitting right next to Yanaka Ginza. What makes this small temple special are the bullet holes that remain on the gates of the wall from the Boshin War in 1868. We’ll save the details for your private tour in Tokyo. But, to sum it up, when Emperor Meiji took power from Tokugawa Shogun who ruled Japan at the time, the Shoguns forces rebelled against the Emperor to retake power. The Shoguns forces and Imperial forces fought throughout Japan, and one of the battles took place right around the area of the temple known as the Battle of Ueno.

Photo Credit: Visiting Japan

Address: 3 Chome-2-6 Nishinippori, Arakawa City, Tokyo 116-0013

Hours: N/A

Website: N/A

How to get there: A 5 minute walk from Nippori Station, West Exit on the JR Line.

 

Yanaka Ginza is one of the few places in Tokyo that still holds a reminiscence of the past shitamachi atmosphere. Shitamachi is a distinct downtown vibe - contrasted with that of Tokyo’s neon lights, karaoke and lively nightlife. To imagine the past shitamachi vibe, try picturing a narrow street lined up with small shops. The shops advertising banners are flapping the afternoon wind. Within these shops are the local customers buying their dinner and/or ingredients for tonight's dinner. Kids are running around and playing nearby on the way home from school. You also notice a couple cats walking around looking for anything they can pick up for their own dinner.  In Japan, this distinct showa era-shitamachi vibe can almost be a stereotype. 

Yanaka Ginza is a famous shitamachi area and it’s also known for being a cat town. It’s a shopping street with shops selling goods and produce, ranging from groceries and necessities to clothes and toys. It’s different from any shopping street or shotengai that you will find in the center of Tokyo. The reason for the cat theme is possibly linked to that shitamachi feel where the cats are away from the main city bustle where they are able to enjoy the quiet downtown part of Tokyo. It’s also said that the local people have cared well for cats which constantly brings them back to the area.

It’s definitely a unique place and worth a visit on your tour in Tokyo.

Photo Credit: Real Estate Japan

Address: 3 Chome-13-1 Yanaka, Taito City, Tokyo 110-0001

Hours: Typically shops open around 10am - 8pm

Website: https://www.yanakaginza.com/

How to get there: A 5 minute walk from Nippori Station, West Exit on the JR Line.

 

Nichiren, a famous Buddhist priest and founder of the Nichiren Buddhism sect stayed at the home of the local lord of this area. He carved a sculpture of himself to which the lord was very pleased and enshrined it which marks the origin of the Tennoji Temple. This was sometime during the late 1300s-early 1400s. It’s one of the few ancient temples left in Tokyo that existed before the Edo period (1603-1868). It was originally called Kannoji Temple but changed its name in 1833 in accordance with the government to Tennoji which also changed from the Nichiren sect to the Tendai sect of Buddhism.

Photo Credit: Japan Visitor

Address: 7 Chome-14-8 Yanaka, Taito City, Tokyo 110-0001, Japan

Hours: N/A

Website: http://www.tendaitokyo.jp/jiinmei/tennoji/

How to get there: A 2 minute walk from Nippori Station, South Exit on the JR Line.

 

Home to one of the largest cemeteries in Tokyo, the Yanaka Cemetery buries over 7000 loved ones. The beautiful cherry trees down the main alleyway is a beautiful spot for sightseeing during the spring and autumn. Among the buried are Yoshinobu Tokugawa and Saint Nicholas of Japan. Tokugawa was the last shogun of Japan and the last shogun of the Edo period when he lost power to Emperor Meiji in 1867. Saint Nicholas of Japan was a Russian orthodox priest who was the first person to bring Eastern Orthodox Chruch to Japan. walk through this cemetery to get to your other destinations in the area.

Photo Credit: Go Tokyo

Address: 7 Chome-5-24 Yanaka, Taito City, Tokyo 110-0001, Japan

Hours: N/A

Website: N/A

How to get there: A 2 minute walk from Nippori Station, South Exit on the JR Line.